If Vikings Fall To Bears In Week 6, Tear-Down Option Becomes Obvious

Vikings fans want answers, and there’s a chance they could get a definitive one after Sunday’s game with the Bears in Chicago.

Both teams are 1-4, and the Bears had gone nearly a full calendar year with a victory until they beat the Washington Commanders in the Week 5 Thursday night game. That victory allowed the franchise to take a deep breath and relax, and they no longer have that nearly year-long slump hanging over their heads.

But make no mistake about it, the Bears are a bad football team, and there’s no reason to think they are a better team than the Vikings. The oddsmakers have listed the Vikings as a 3-point road favorites even though Minnesota will be without superstar wideout Justin Jefferson (hamstring, Injured Reserve for at least 4 weeks).

The Vikings have enough receiving weapons in rookie Jordan Addison, K.J. Osborn and tight end T.J. Hockenson to move the ball up and down the field – especially if running back Alexander Mattison finds a way to hold on to the ball – and come away with their second straight road victory. (The lone win came against the Panthers in Carolina.)

But if the Bears suddenly have confidence as a result of their victory, quarterback Justin Fields breaks loose for a couple of huge runs and wide receiver D.J. Moore follows up on his 8-catch, 230-yard NFL offensive player of the week effort with something similar, the Vikings could lose.

If that happens, the Vikings will have their answer. It will be time for general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to start making the moves that will give the team a chance to be much better in 2025 and 2026.

There is no typo there and we are not forgetting the 2024 season. The Vikings would not be better in 2024 if they trade assets like Kirk Cousins and Danielle Hunter – both rumored to be on the market – because that’s not how it works. When a team trades its established stars, the usual return includes top draft picks.

Perhaps it would be better to secure young athletes who have already established themselves as talented players with the majority of their careers in front of them, but teams will not trade young stars in the middle of the season. Most teams don’t like to trade high draft picks either, but when the deals are extrapolated out and the move results in a likely spot in the playoffs, big-time draft picks can be secured.

It takes time for those selections to turn into outstanding players, and there are no guarantees that they will reach that level. But a loss to the Bears would make the tear-down option quite realistic for the Vikings.

That’s something that Cousins is not considering. He is mouthing all the right things about the Vikings going “1-0 against the Bears.” But he has also pointed out that slow starts don’t necessarily add up to disastrous finishes, and he made references to the early part of his career in Washington in addition to his career with the Vikings.

“We started 2-4 in 2015 and went to the playoffs, won the division,” Cousins said. “Started 0-2 in 2016, and it came down to the final game and final drive to go to the playoffs. We didn’t do it, but we were right there at the end. In 2020, we started 1-5 and ended up being one game from making the playoffs and had all kinds of close losses in November and December. You understand there’s a lot of football ahead.”

That history lesson makes sense, but if the 1-5 includes a loss to the lowly Bears, it’s a different story. Especially with the undefeated San Francisco 49ers coming to Minnesota in Week 7.

Beating the Niners after losing to the Bears is a pipe dream, especially with Jefferson sidelined. There is no escaping reality if the Vikings come out on the short end at Chicago.